At A Glance

5 February 1981 at a glance

Day of the week
5 February 1981 was a Thursday.
Billboard Hot 100 No. 1
The Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 was “The Tide Is High” by Blondie.
Top Film of 1981
The highest-grossing film worldwide released in 1981 was Raiders of the Lost Ark.
Bestselling Novel of 1981
“Noble House” by James Clavell was No. 1 on Publishers Weekly's US fiction list for 1981.
Top-Rated TV Show
“Dallas” (CBS) was No. 1 in the Nielsen ratings for the 1981–82 season.
Star sign
The star sign for 5 February is Aquarius.
Chinese zodiac
In the Chinese zodiac, 5 February 1981 fell in the Year of the Rooster.
Birthstone
The birthstone for February is Amethyst.
Moon phase
The moon phase on 5 February 1981 was New Moon.

On this day: 5 February

  • 1967 Cultural Revolution: The Shanghai People's Commune is formally proclaimed, with Yao Wenyuan and Zhang Chunqiao being appointed as its leaders.
  • 1971 Astronauts land on the Moon in the Apollo 14 mission.
  • 1981 Operation Soap: The Metropolitan Toronto Police Force raids four gay bathhouses in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, arresting just under 300, triggering mass protest and rallies.
  • 1985 Ugo Vetere, then the mayor of Rome, and Chedli Klibi, then the mayor of Carthage, meet in Tunis to sign a treaty of friendship officially ending the Third Punic War which lasted 2,131 years.
  • 1988 Manuel Noriega is indicted on drug smuggling and money laundering charges.

Famous people born on February 5

  • Cristiano Ronaldo, Portuguese footballer (born 1985)
  • Michael Sheen, Welsh actor and director (born 1969)
  • Neymar, Brazilian footballer (born 1992)
  • Laura Linney, American actress (born 1964)

Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

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Events of 1981 in the United States

A selection from Wikipedia's '1981 in the United States'. Not a complete list.

  • March 31 – The 53rd Academy Awards, hosted by Johnny Carson, are held at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in Los Angeles. Robert Redford's directorial debut, Ordinary People, wins four awards, including Best Picture and Best Director.
  • April 12 – The Space Shuttle program: Space Shuttle Columbia (John Young, Robert Crippen) launches on the STS-1 mission, returning to Earth on April 14.
  • June 12 – Raiders of the Lost Ark, directed by Steven Spielberg is released as the first film of the Indiana Jones film series.

Life in the US in 1981

President

Ronald Reagan

Gas (per gallon)

$1.31

Loaf of Bread

$0.54

Average House

$68,900

Weekly Wage

$285

Or

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Famous Faces Born in the 1980s

Well-known people born in the same decade as you, not on your birthday.

Sources: Wikidata and Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

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